


Epilogue

by DarkShadeless



Series: Magnolia Drive [10]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Gen, Halloween story, did you really think you'd get away so easily Mr. Hardison?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-31
Updated: 2019-10-31
Packaged: 2021-01-15 18:42:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21257876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkShadeless/pseuds/DarkShadeless
Summary: All is well that ends well... isn't it?





	Epilogue

Hardison drops into the SUV with a groan of pure relief. Gods. For a moment he wasn’t sure they’d get out of that meeting with their hide intact. Townhall presentations are the _worst_.

“No jobs for at least a week. We deserve a break. What do you think?”

After moment or two with no answer, he opens his eyes and glances at his partner. “Decidueye?”

His pokemon is staring straight ahead. The light in its eyes sends a shiver down Hardison’s spine. “Deci.”

He almost doesn’t dare look. Almost.

Outside, night is about to well and truly fall. Dusk is creeping in and bringing mist with it, blanketing the street. It’s so thick you can’t see more than a few feet.

_July_, he reminds himself, _it’s july_. It’s _summer _and this kind of weather isn’t normal. He had thought they left most of it behind on Magnolia Drive but it looks like Magnolia followed them after all. In the middle of the street, a stone’s throw from their car a silhouette peels out of the mist.

Hardison almost relaxes at the sight. It’s just Annie.

And then he realizes Decidueye is still tense. He realizes she’s not coming closer. She’s not moving at all. She’s not looking up. Even at this distance he can see a splash of color in her hair.

There’s a pink bow wound into the strands, sitting just over her ear.

_Shit. I really hoped this wouldn’t happen._

Mimikyu. A breed of pokemon so shy the places you can find it in the wild can be counted on one hand. They don’t do well in bright environments and never show their true self.

But where they turn up around other Ghost pokemon… they tend to be the leader of the pack.

Mimi came for them and it didn’t come alone.

Behind the mimicry of Annie, Hardison can make out other shapes, diffuse but not enough to conceal what they are. There’s a Trevenant’s shadow, a Traunmagil, probably the one that chased them around, more than one Haunter and… is that a Gengar? Dear gods.

“Decidueye?”

“Deci?”

“We’re in deep shit.”

“Decidu_eye_.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know you don’t need me to tell you that,” Hardison grumbles, though his heart is barely in it. This… this doesn’t look good. He had thought, hoped more like, that the reassurance he wouldn’t bother Magnolia anymore would get them off his back. “Alright, here’s the plan. Floodlights and whirlwind, pedal to the metal. Sound good?”

“_Deci_-“

Before his poke-partner is done telling him how very bad an idea that is, Mimi moves. In the typical fashion of Ghosts everywhere, it doesn’t bother with walking. One moment it’s out in the street, the next it _flickers_ right in front of their hood.

Hardison gets a look at why it didn’t raise its head and it’s because _it can’t do faces_-

And it’s gone again.

“Shit!” He glances about wildly, one hand on his pocket and ready to throw a pot of banishing smoke at the first sign of a Ghost pokemon about to jump him and damn how pissy Decidueye would be later but there’s… nothing. Nothing at all.

There’s nothing on the street either.

The shapes are gone. Even the mist seems to be lighting up. There’s only one thing there that wasn’t before.

On top of the SUV’s hood sits a round glass container with cheerful red cloth covering the cap. The label has been cut to look like a strawberry.

Hardison stares at it and tries to get over his heart attack. Strawberry jam. Godsdamned strawberry jam.

_Looks like they got the message after all._

Slowly he sinks into his seat and throws an arm over his face. He doesn’t stop laughing until Decidueye boxes him in the stomach with its wing.

**Author's Note:**

> The end
> 
> I hope you have a spooky 31st of October! ^_____^


End file.
